Day 62 - Solon Springs, WI to Hayward, WI - Two Far 2020 - NTF (Not Two Far)

July 31, 2020

Day 62 - Solon Springs, WI to Hayward, WI

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After a lovely quiet night on the lake, we got up early this morning and were on the road by 8:45 AM. That's like the crack of dawn for us! We started out on US Hwy 53, which, like yesterday, had good shoulders and relatively light traffic.

Our first break was in the little town of Gordon. At the convenience store there, we met SGM (Ret) John Souza. He spent two years at Walter Reed recovering from an IED blast in Iraq in which he was the sole survivor. During his recovery, he participated in a supported bike ride from Washington, DC to Gettysburg, using ^{a handcycle for the trip. It was a special moment for us to meet him.}

The scenery today was mostly woods. We saw a few lakes and wetlands.

We turned from US 53 onto WI 77. It wasn't nearly as smooth as the US highway and it didn't have much shoulder, but there was not much traffic and it was a pleasant ride.

Several miles before we got to Hayward, we stopped at the Outback Bar and Pizza. We were the only customers and had a good time talking with the owner, Steve. He and his wife moved here from the Twin Cities and he says the bar is a stepping stone to retirement.

Just as we were riding into Hayward, I missed what would have been a great photo - a young coyote walking through someone's front yard. I don't recall seeing one in a residential area before.

This beautiful old Carnegie Library is now a bike and ski shop. If it can't be a library anymore, that seems like a good alternative use.

We found two interesting places to visit in Hayward. Hayward is the site of the annual Lumberjack World Championships with logrolling, pole climbing, cutting, sawing and other events. Scheer's Lumberjack Village usually has demonstrations of those events in the summer. Sadly, both the championship competition and the ongoing demonstrations had to be cancelled this year.

The second place Kerry found was the Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame and Museum. It was open, so we paid a visit.

It features the world's largest muskie sculpture.

I was able to stand in it's mouth without getting chewed.

There were several other fish sculptures on the grounds.

There were displays of old tackle boxes...

There was also an ice-fishing display, as well as many other displays, but you get the idea.

Kerry here...

The museum was interesting and well worth the visit. According to the museum there are over 50,000 rods, reels and lures and almost 1000 antique motors on display. In addition, there are over 300 mounted game fish, some of which I never have heard of.

In Junior High and High School I used to go fishing almost every day at our neighborhood lake. It was fun trying to find my favorite reels and lures. (I was pretty successful finding the lures, not so much finding the reels)

Today's ride: 43 miles (69 km)
Total: 1,849 miles (2,976 km)

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Curt & Helene ReedVery interesting and well done fishing museum even for a non fisherman
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